Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut DLC release date announced

Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut, BioWare's attempt to expand the controversial endings of Mass Effect 3, finally has an official release date. The free downloadable add-on which will provide closure "through additional cinematic sequences and epilogue scenes" will be available on June 26th on Xbox 360, PC, and PS3 in North America and July 4th for PlayStation 3 in Europe.

Extended Cut isn't a new ending or a re-imagining by any means, but it will "provide more of the answers that players have been asking for".

"It gives a sense of what the future holds as a result of the decisions made throughout the series," the FAQ reads. "And it shows greater detail in the successes or failures based on how players achieved their endings."

The Extended Cut will take up roughly 1.9 GB of space and will *spoiler* require players to load a save game from before the attack on the Cerberus Base and play through to the end of the game.

According to BioWare, "The Extended Cut endings will differ depending on choices made throughout the Mass Effect series, so multiple playthroughs with a variety of different decisions will be required to experience the variety of possibilities offered by new content."

The company didn't say exactly how many different endings there will be, but prior to the game's launch BioWare promised "many different endings" to Mass Effect 3 that were a result of all of your actions and decisions in the previous games. That, of course, wasn't what BioWare delivered and after enraged fans spoke their mind, BioWare caved and announced the new Extended Cut.

Check out an exclusive interview with BioWare's Casey Hudson, Mac Walters, and jessica Merizan about Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut.